Australian Gliders national women‚Äôs wheelchair basketball team player, Bridie Kean. The team will be competing at the Suncoast Spinners annual tournament this weekend at the Caloundra Indoor Sports Stadium. Photo: Brett Wortman / Sunshine Coast DailyBrett Wortman

Paralympic medallist proves there’s no limits

LONDON silver medallist Bridie Kean tries not to look back on her wheelchair basketball team – Australia’s Gliders – missing out on this year’s Rio games with disappointment.

The pain of not qualifying made her look at past achievements, ones with which she was initially disappointed, and realise how special they were.

“Sport doesn’t always lead to a fairytale. (Missing out) made me appreciate what we did as a team,” she explained.

“I once thought when you won silver, you lost gold.

“Now I’m looking back thinking that was a pretty amazing experience.”

Kean is sure to look back fondly at what she achieved in the past week at the IVF Va’a World Sprints at Lake Kawana for some time.

In a year she had initially dedicated wholly to focussing on her PhD in Paralympic Sport Management at the University of the Sunshine Coast, the 29-year-old also picked up a paddle and starred for Australia in her new sport.

Kean can now call herself a va’a world champion, scoring gold in the Para Mixed V12 500m and the Para Mixed V6 1000m finals with her Mooloolaba-based No Limits team-mates.

“I’ve never been involved in anything like it,” she said.

“I expected it to be a great experience and it exceeded all of those expectations.”

After this year, Kean said she would have to decide what the future holds in terms of competing.

Her outrigging coach and 1992 Olympian Gayle Mayes, is looking to develop a strong kayaking crew in the coming years.

“What I’d like to do is get some of the athletes who’ve been paddling and offer them the opportunity to try out kayaking,” she said.

“I’d like to have a big shot at Tokyo (2020 Olympics).”

Mayes said Kean was an athlete with the potential to make it to the top in kayaking, if she would like to.

“She’s a phenomenal athlete with an incredible power to weight ratio,” Mayes said.

“But I won’t put pressure on her.

“If she wants to make the switch the door is open.”

Kean said elite sport was in her blood.

“After 2016 I think I’ll re-focus and and have some big decisions to make about my own future in sport... whether that be in kayaking or basketball,” Kean said.

The IVF Va’a World Sprints come to an end at Lake Kawana today with 14 finals closing out the eight-day racing program.